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John McDonald

Toronto Blue Jays — No. 6
Shortstop
Born: September 24, 1974 (1974-09-24) (age 33)
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
July 4, 1999 for the Cleveland Indians
Selected MLB statistics (through October 3, 2007)
Batting Average	.240
Hits	330
Runs scored	161
Home runs	8
Runs batted in	103
Teams
Cleveland Indians (1999-2004) Detroit Tigers (2005) Toronto Blue Jays (2005-present)

John Joseph McDonald (born September 24, 1974 in New London, Connecticut) is a Major League Baseball infielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, primarily known for his defensive abilities. He was also a member of one of the last baseball teams for Providence College before the team was disbanded.

McDonald was drafted in the 12th round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft by the Cleveland Indians. He made his MLB debut for Cleveland on July 4, 1999. On December 2, 2004, McDonald was traded from Cleveland to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for future considerations (Thomas Mastny) [1].

McDonald was primarily a backup for Russ Adams at shortstop, putting up a .290 batting average and .340 OBP in 93 at-bats for the Blue Jays to go along with 5 stolen bases. He was traded from the Blue Jays to the Detroit Tigers on July 22, 2005 for future considerations. [2]. McDonald hit .260 with a .308 OBP for Detroit in 73 at-bats. He was traded from the Detroit Tigers back to the Toronto Blue Jays on November 10, 2005 for cash considerations. [3].

During the 2006 season, he was the starting shortstop for the Toronto Blue Jays due to the defensive struggles of teammate Russ Adams. At a point in the season, John McDonald was labeled the "Emergency Back-up Catcher" for the Blue Jays behind their starting catchers Bengie Molina and Gregg Zaun as both played the role of Designated Hitter when they were not defensive catchers.

On July 25, 2006, McDonald hit his first career grand slam in a game against the Seattle Mariners.

McDonald started the 2007 season by sharing the position with newcomer Royce Clayton. He also played games at third base as Troy Glaus's backup. Later in the season after showing his strong defensive abilities, McDonald replaced Royce Clayton as the everyday starting shortstop. Clayton has since been released and McDonald continues to play shortstop, often contributing to exceptional defensive plays (in combination with fellow infielders Aaron Hill and Lyle Overbay). He has recently been spoken of in the media as a contender to win a Gold Glove after leading AL shortstops in fielding percentage (.985) in 2007. Due in large part to his displays in the field this season, he has recently received a 2-year contract extension from the Blue Jays - the deal is reportedly worth 3.8 million US.

While McDonald's batting has been sporadic, recently he has become a stopgap in the lower part of the Blue Jays' batting order.

In a recent poll of the viewers of the Canadian sports station Rogers Sportsnet, which broadcasts the majority of the Blue Jays' games, John McDonald was voted the most popular Blue Jay, narrowly edging out Roy Halladay.

• McDonald is one of only a few players to be traded for himself. The Blue Jays traded him to the Tigers in the middle of the 2005 season for future considerations. McDonald was then given back to the Blue Jays following the 2005 season to complete the trade.

• Career statistics from baseball-reference.com
• MLB.com
• ESPN.com: John McDonald

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